Pubdate: Thu, 23 Nov 2006
Source: Portage la Prairie Daily Graphic (CN MB)
Copyright: 2006 Portage la Prairie Daily Graphic
Contact:  http://www.portagedailygraphic.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1993
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?224 (Cannabis and Driving)

CRACKDOWN ON DRUG-IMPAIRED DRIVERS

The timing could have been better for Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

In the midst of National Addictions Awareness Week, his Conservative 
government has introduced legislation that will target drivers who 
get behind the wheel while stoned on drugs. The proposed legislation, 
tabled on Tuesday, aims to make drug-impaired driving as socially 
unacceptable as drunk driving has become, says the prime minister.

Under the Tory bill, the minimum fine for a first offence of either 
drug-or alcohol-impaired driving would be $1,000 rather than the 
current $600. A second offence would bring a mandatory 30 days behind 
bars rather than 14, and a third offence would result in a 120-day 
jail sentence instead of the current 90.

The legislation also creates a new offence of being in care and 
control of a vehicle while in possession of an illicit drug, such as 
marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamine -- something like driving with 
an open bottle of beer.

The penalty would be a mandatory six-month driving ban, in addition 
to jail time that could run up to five years.

The Tories' proposal also sets out a series of procedures police must 
follow in assessing drug impairment.

The first step is a preliminary roadside test of the familiar 
touch-your-nose or walk-the-line variety. If a driver fails that, the 
next step is examination at the RCMP detachment by an officer trained 
to recognize signs of drug use. Only after that could police finally 
demand a sample of bodily fluids such as blood, urine or saliva.

While Justice Minister Vic Toews has admitted the core of the 
Conservatives' bill -- setting out the legal steps police forces must 
follow to prove drug impairment -- is taken straight from legislation 
put forward by the previous Liberal government, Harper's Tories are 
going a step further by boosting the penalties upon conviction.

It is a tough stance, but one that is definitely needed to discourage 
kids and adults from driving after smoking pot, ingesting cocaine or 
taking crystal meth.

According to a 2005 Addictions Foundation of Manitoba survey, 43.3 
per cent of Grade 12 students who were asked said they had used 
marijuana during the previous year. The survey also showed 26.5 per 
cent had used other drugs in 2004. When it comes to drugs and 
driving, the poll results showed in 2004, almost 23 per cent of male 
Grade 12 students had gotten behind the wheel after smoking 
marijuana. The figures are not much better for girls. Just over 18 
per cent of female Grade 12 students said they drove after using pot.

It is obvious from those statistics drug use poses a real danger on 
the roads throughout this province and country.

While drugs, and particularly cannabis, erode a different set of 
skills among drivers than alcohol, they are still potentially lethal. 
A person who is impaired by marijuana, cocaine or crystal meth is as 
much a risk to other motorists as somebody who is above the legal 
alcohol limit.

With their tough legislation, the Tories are sending a strong and 
clear message to all Canadians -- they will pay a hefty price for 
drug-impaired driving. It is a message that should not be ignored.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman